General

March 10, 2011 - Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) Enforcement Division agents found the body of a missing man in the Vermilion River in Lafayette at 10:15 a.m. on March 10.

Senior Agent Nick Guillory, Agent Jake Darden and Agent Justin Lowry were on patrol when they located the deceased body of Mitch Jackson, 39, of Rayne, in the Vermilion River behind 200 Farmington Road in Lafayette.

Jackson had been missing since Friday, March 4 after he was involved in a five-car accident on Ambassador Caffery Parkway in Lafayette and left the scene. He then drove his vehicle to the local Home Depot and locked the vehicle with his cell phone and medications for high blood pressure inside.

He was last seen on surveillance video entering and leaving a few stores on Ambassador Caffery Parkway before disappearing.

After locating the body, LDWF agents contacted the Lafayette Parish Sheriff's Office (LPSO) and Lafayette Police Department (LPD), who then arrived on scene to recover the body and conduct an investigation. Jackson's body is now at the Lafayette Coroner's Office. An official cause of death is not available at this time.

March 10, 2011 - A portion of Muddy Bayou Road from Saline Bayou, eastward to Nolan Bayou Road, has been temporarily closed to automobile traffic on the Dewey Wills Wildlife Management Area (WMA) in LaSalle Parish, effective March 9. The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) closed that section of road due to high water from recent rainfall.

The road will be reopened when water recedes and the roadway dries sufficiently to allow for vehicular traffic.

The Department of Wildlife and Fisheries is charged with managing and protecting Louisiana's abundant natural resources. For more information, visit us at www.wlf.louisiana.gov on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ldwffb or follow us on Twitter @LDWF.

For more information on the road closure, contact Steve Smith at 318-487-5885 or ssmith@wlf.la.gov.

March 9, 2011 - Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) Enforcement Division agents rescued 32 people on March 8 in Tangipahoa Parish from flooding conditions due to severe rainfall.

LDWF agents responded to a call around 7 p.m. of a vehicle that got swept off of Lewiston Road east of Kentwood into Big Creek. Sgt. Toby Miller and Senior Agent Brody Roberts launched a shallow drive vessel into the creek and were able to pull a female and her young daughter from the rooftop of the vehicle. Agents reported there was only about 6 inches of the vehicle above the water when the rescue was made.

LDWF agents then received a call around 8 p.m. from the Kentwood Fire Department of two trailer parks that flooded in Tangipahoa. By 12:30 a.m. on March 9, Sgt. Miller, Senior Agent Roberts and Sgt. Darryl Galloway were able to rescue 30 people from the two trailer parks again using a shallow draft vessel. Agents reported the water was above the skirting of the trailers. Agents also rescued two dogs and two horses.

Agents brought the rescued people to Hwy. 51 where emergency personnel from Acadian Ambulance, Tangipahoa Sheriff's Office, Tangipahoa Police Department and the Kentwood Fire Department were on standby. Emergency personnel then transported the rescued people to a shelter in Kentwood. Between all of the emergency personnel that responded, over 100 people were rescued from trailer parks and roadways on the night of March 8.

"These three agents responded in a very quick and efficient manner, which is required for any search and rescue mission," said Col. Winton Vidrine, head of the LDWF Enforcement Division. "Enforcement agents are well equipped and trained for search and rescue missions as they have the trucks and vessels to get to remote areas that flood and have numerous hours of swift water and first aid training."

LDWF agents will remain on standby statewide and also assist with local emergency responders as severe weather is expected to continue throughout the day.

The LDWF Enforcement Division is the primary agency for search and rescue in the state and the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (GOHSEP) designated lead for search and rescue operations. LDWF agents have several decades of experience in boating safety enforcement, maritime patrol enforcement and maritime search and rescue.

March 1, 2011 - The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries will host six public meetings around the state to present proposed 2011-13 hunting season dates, Wildlife Management Areas (WMA) general rules and regulation changes, changes in the Deer Management Assistance Program (DMAP) and waterfowl season options.

Public comment will be taken on all items under consideration by the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission through May 5. The meeting dates and locations include:

March 9 at 6 p.m., Alexandria Convention Hall located at 915 Third St.

To view the full notice of intent and all proposed hunting season dates and regulations changes for the upcoming hunting season, please visit http://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/action-items. Public comment will be accepted at LWFC monthly meetings from March through May or can be submitted directly to Randy Myers, Wildlife Division, LDWF, PO Box 98000, Baton Rouge, LA 70898-9000, until May 5.

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries is charged with managing and protecting Louisiana's abundant natural resources. For more information, visit us at www.wlf.louisiana.gov on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ldwffb or follow us on Twitter @LDWF.

Feb. 25, 2011 - The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) is advising all visitors to Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge that Price Lake Road, a primary access point for public outdoor recreation on the western end of the refuge, will be closed until March 12 due to work needed on the road bed.

This extension of the normal Dec. 1 through March 1 winter closure of Price Lake Road is necessary due to ongoing repairs on the degraded road. Repairs are being made to improve access and for the public’s safety.

All other canals and public access areas on the refuge affected by the winter closure will reopen as scheduled on March 1. Other areas available for public access include the East End Boat Launch/Joseph Harbor Canal and East End Locks Road, both located just over three miles east of the refuge headquarters building, as well as Rollover Landing which features a private boat ramp with launch fee along the refuge’s eastern boundary near Pecan Island. All public access at the refuge is open from official sunrise to sunset.

The first available date for public access on Price Lake Road will be at sunrise on Saturday, March 12, 2011.

Rockefeller Refuge includes 76,000 acres in coastal Cameron and Vermilion parishes and is managed by LDWF. Recreational shrimping, crabbing, fishing, and bird-watching are outdoor recreation options available on the refuge.

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries is charged with managing and protecting Louisiana's abundant natural resources. For more information, visit us at www.wlf.louisiana.gov on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ldwffb or follow us on Twitter @LDWF.

For more information on Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge, visit the LDWF website at www.wlf.la.gov or call 337-491-2593.

Agents stopped a vehicle being driven by Leroy Ezernack, 28, after they witnessed the passenger, Ricky Kellogg, 53, throw a cup out of the passenger side window.

During the stop, agents allegedly found Ezernack in possession of drug paraphernalia, marijuana and an open alcoholic container. Ezernack was also cited for driving with a suspended driver's license. Agents also allegedly found Kellogg in possession of hydrocodone pills and open container of an alcoholic beverage. Kellogg was also cited for intentional littering.

Possession of hydrocodone pills without a prescription carries a fine up to $5,000 or up to five years in jail. Possessing drug paraphernalia brings a fine up to $500 fine or up to six months in jail. Possession of marijuana carries a fine up to $500 or up to six months in jail.

Driving with a suspended driver's license carries a fine up to $500 or up to six months in jail. For open container, both men face up to a $100 fine. Intentional littering carries a $75 fine and eight hours in a litter abatement program.

Agents booked the two men into the Caddo Correctional Center. LDWF agents involved in the case were Senior Agents Jay Thomas and Frank Reger.

For more information, contact Adam Einck at 225-765-2465 or aeinck@wlf.la.gov.

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) Law Enforcement Academy today, Feb. 16, graduated its 26th class of cadets into the ranks of LDWF Enforcement Division agents at a ceremony in Baton Rouge.

After six months of intensive physical and academic training at the academy, 15 newly commissioned agents are ready to begin enforcing hunting, fishing and boating regulations that govern the use of the state's natural resources.

LDWF Secretary Robert Barham was the keynote speaker at the ceremony. “You have a tremendous responsibility to protect Louisiana’s rich natural resources and those who enjoy those resources, whether in the field or on the water,” Barham noted. “Congratulations on your achievement which we celebrate today.”

Col. Winton Vidrine, head of the LDWF Enforcement Division, presented certificates and recited the Oath of Office making the cadets’ transition to commissioned agents official. “We welcome them into the ranks and hope they all have long and successful careers as wildlife and fisheries enforcement agents,” said Col. Vidrine.

During the graduation ceremony, Lowry received the firearms award given for the best marksman in the class and the academic award for having the highest grades. Fontenot took home the physical training award for being the most fit. Lowry also won the overall award, which is a cumulative score from the firearms, academic and physical training categories.

At the academy, cadets train to enforce the state's recreational boating laws, the state and federal wildlife and fisheries laws and general law enforcement work on the state's many wildlife management areas. The academy also covers general law enforcement training equal to that of other state law enforcement officers.

The graduating agents fill vacancies in LDWF’s Enforcement Division and will be assigned to a field-training officer for their first six months of duty. Now part of the agency’s commissioned officer staff, the agents will join the ranks of those patrolling land and water to primarily detect game, fish and boating law violations. These duties require travel into Louisiana's forests, swamps, fields, streams, bayous, lakes, marshlands, the Gulf of Mexico and on the state roadway system.

LDWF agents along with the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) arrived on the scene at 2:30 p.m. of a two vessel collision involving a 20-foot Hydrosport captained by Ralph Grimaldi, 63, of Slidell, and an 18-foot Boston Whaler captained by Scott Jordan, 49, of Pearl River.

The USCG airlifted Grimaldi to the Naval Air Station in Belle Chasse where he was not able to survive his injuries. LDWF agents transported Jordan to Orleans Parish Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel waiting on the shore. EMS personnel then took Jordan to the North Shore Ochsner Hospital to be treated for non-life threatening injuries.

Grimaldi's vessel was also carrying two passengers who did not receive any major injuries.

LDWF agents are currently investigating the incident. Agents do not suspect alcohol or drugs at this time.